Discounters Aldi and Lidl are cashing in on well-heeled shoppers as households earning at least £50,000 a year are flocking to the stores for posh nosh at budget prices.

Figures reveal more high-earners spend their cash at the two chains, than those on salaries of £15,500 or less.

Market analysts Mintel revealed that almost eight in ten people with household incomes of £50,000 or more shopped at the stores, compared with seven in ten of those less well-off, reports the Daily Mirror.

The gourmet grub, fine wine and bargains in the special buy aisles are pulling in the punters - with almost half of shoppers in the higher income bracket buying party items like champagne, Prosecco and nibbles from the discounters, Mintel said.

Meanwhile the latest research from market experts Kantar Worldpanel shows Lidl is Britain's fastest growing supermarket with sales rocketing 16% in the 12 weeks to October 8.

Aldi saw its sales soar by 13.4% over the same period and the chains’ combined figures added £390 million to the quarter - accounting for half of the entire market’s growth.

An artist's impression of how the new Aldi supermarket at Chellaston might look

While Aldi has already overtaken Waitrose for market share, Lidl is snapping at its heels with 5.2% compared with 5.3% at Waitrose.

According to Mintel, seven in ten Brits reckon the quality of food and drink at the discounters is as good as anywhere else.

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And two thirds feel the chains’ premium products match top of the range labels at major supermarkets.

The thrill of an unexpected bargain is a massive draw for punters and almost three quarters of shoppers revealed new product ranges gave the weekly shop the buzz-factor.

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Nick Carroll, Mintel's senior research analyst added: “High-income households are just as likely to shop at food discounters as lower-income ones.

"The post-recession success of leading discount food retailers has been built on a softening of their hard discount roots and bringing in ranges which appeal to a wider variety of consumers.

Lidl staff get a 10% discount on their shopping

"A part of this success has been the introduction of more premium ranges, something that is clearly going over well with shoppers."

The data also revealed nine in ten Brits shop at a budget store for food, drink and household items and this year total sales across the high street are set to hit £26.7 billion with stores including Poundland, B&M and Wilko cashing in.

And experts predict sales will increase by 57% by 2022 to £41.8 billion as value-for-money chains continue to woo savvy shoppers.